Daily Devotion for Day 35 of Lent 2016

Scripture Reading: Exodus 35:1-29 (NRSV)

When I think of spinning goat hair into
yarn, writing a check seems less of a hassle.

I've been involved in building projects in two appointments now.  It is always exciting when the congregation gets involved in putting something new together.  When a project is successful, it is when the whole congregation from the youngest to the oldest gets involved.

I can imagine that is what it was like for Israel to come together and build not only the Tabernacle but all of the finery that was instructed in previous chapters.  They had undoubtedly been witnesses to temples for the Egyptian gods and goddesses that were worshiped all around them.  Now they had come into a new territory and there would be temple structures unique to the local deities.

They were excited to build something to honor God who had freed them from bondage.

As we think about the Monday of Holy Week, Jesus has now entered Jerusalem and we know what is coming.  As he overturns the tables of the money changers, we realize that they are set up in front of the Temple.  I believe that this was about access.  The poor would have made great sacrifices to make a pilgrimage to Jerusalem only to find people set to part them from the remaining resources they had on them.  Some would have been unable to make the appropriate sacrifices.

As we look at the freewill offering given for the Tabernacle, we see that all were able to offer what they could.  It is not limited.

How do we capture a sense of being a part of something larger than ourselves this week?



Photo by William Andrus via Flickr.com, used by permission under the Creative Commons license.